Fallen Knight
by EmperorCookies
Summary: Twenty hours before the biggest Huntsman army Remnant has ever seen is set to storm Salem's castle, Commander Arc of Battlegroup Beacon has some last minute problems he needs to solve before what is likely a battle most are not returning from. Rated T for Gore N' Blood.
1. Chapter I

**_UPDATE: Slight change to the timetable and I changed the name from Battlegroup Beacon to Beacon or B Company_**

 _ **Chapter I**_

 _ **Arisan - Mistral - 100 miles from "Fortress Salem" - 0000 - 17:00:00 D-Day**_

 _"The Skum Pitt" If you insist on calming your nerves with that infernal substance can we travel somewhere more... honorable?"_ Crocea Mors said with a suspicious tone.

"What's wrong with this place?" Jaune asked, fingers playing with the hilt of Crocea Mors, watching the blue glow coat his fingers with armor," I'll keep Artemis off if it'll help?"

 _"He has nothing to do with it, we're in a town filled with mercenaries that know that mark on your sword all too well,"_ She warned as Jaund twisted the handle to the door.

 _Relax I'll put on my tough guy act._ He thought, pushing the door open.

The scent of cheap booze and cigarette smoke was the first thing to hit him, the second was the fact that the entire bar was staring directly into his eyes as the dim, blue glow from Crocea Mors traveled across his body eventually drawing everyone's eyes to the sparkling golden Arcs on his chest.

About five Altesian soldiers shot into a salute,"S-sir," One of them stammered out," if I may, w-why are you here? Shouldn't you be planning the invasion with the General sir?"

"At ease, I thought I would have a drink, planning an invasion of a foreign land does strange things to your nerves," Jaune said in a gruff and hardened voice, the sapphire orbs inside his Crusader-style helmet scanning the diverse crowd of Huntsman and mercenaries, no doubt here to partake in the invasion," As you were."

The chatter slowly started again-most of it about him as he walked to the bar and took a stool, his helmet de-materializing on his head and revealing his blond, short, scraggly beard and hair,"Fancy trick there, what kind of Atlas tech is that?" The bartender to his right said in a deep almost intimidating voice.

Jaune just blinked at the man a few times before his right eye lit up into a ring of plasma-blue," I'm a knight from the dark ages who as given a magical sword forged by a dragon," There was a click and a mighty rasp of steel as Crocea Mors was drawn and placed on the counter," which just so happened to bond by soul and armor," She gestured to the full-plate armor covering he- _his_ body," to it when I died, hereby making me immortal."

"..."

"..."

"What?" She asked

"HAHAHA" The bartender descended into a fit of hearty laughter the would make Port weep manly tears of joy," Oh man...h-here, on the house," He said placing a glass of whiskey on the counter, bellowing laughter all the way.

"Want more proof?" She asked, well more of stated as his other eye lit up plasma-blue, signaling she has taken full consciousness, and wrapped his hand around the hilt of Crocea Mors.

It ignited into a raging blue fire...

"..." Another beat of silence as the entire bar watched in amazement.

"Fitting power considering I died by burning to death, well, immolation really." She said, watching the flames dance.

"Well lad, I can see why yer' in command of that group from Beacon, havin' a knight in yer' noggin' is pretty useful," He said once the flames cut and Jaune's eyes returned their normal sapphire color.

"She do the thing with the sword again? She's gonna burn something down someday," He said, sheathing Crocea Mors and taking a drink, much to the protests and gags of Crocea.

The bartender held his hand out,"Samuel Charles, at yer' service capn'" Jaune shook his hand, examining his new 'buddy' closer now that he was more in the light. He was built like Yastuhachi but was bald and had a long black beard that juggles whenever he walks and his eyes were the same shade of gold as Blake's. He wore a buttoned up black trench coat and blue jeans with brown combat boots and a massive black Claymore on his back, again, similar to Yastu's.

"Jaune. Jaune Arc. And that knight you just met was Crocea Mors. If I may, what is a Huntsman doing running a bar?" Jaune asked taking another drink.

"The bars not mine, just workin' er' to get some extra lien for the Mrs. back in Mistral. I'm er' for the same reason as you, to kill all em' bastards and cleave Salem's head off with this er' sword!" He stated proudly, earning a chuckle from Jaune.

"Yeah, I promise I'll bring her head back for you if you can't get up there and an Arc never goes back on his word," He said with a quick thanks as Samuel poured some more whiskey.

They sat in silence for a few seconds as Jaune let out a sad sigh,"Lad?" Samuel asked, getting a grunt in return,"If it's not too much to ask but, why aren't you with yer' team?" He got another sad sigh in return.

Artemis slowly slipped off his body, revealing his black hoodie and jeans. He reached into the hoodie's pocket and pulled out a picture, he took the chance to look at it before giving it to Samuel.

The picture was taken not too long after the _successful_ defense of Haven as they were still in their battle worn clothes and still had their weapons drawn. They were in the main Courtyard of Haven with the stupidest of grins plastered on their faces, on the far left Miss. Goodwitch was watching Qrow and Taiyang with a rare smile as Qrow had his scythe hefted over his shoulder and flask upturned over his mouth with a horrified expression on his face (Probably because Tai replaced his alcoholic jet fuel with water) and Tai behind him clutching his stomach and laughing

A little more to their right was Weiss leaning on Myrtenaster as well as using an uncharacteristically happy Blake as they giggled like schoolgirls about how Weiss escaped the Schnee Mansion.

To their right was Nora finally getting tired of waiting and tackling Ren into a kiss as Yang, no doubt, was rattling off teases as fast as Oobleck judging how they looked like two tomatoes.

Next to them was Port, Oobleck, and Oscar and judging the agony on Oscar's face and Ooblecks frantic drinking from his thermos as well as port swinging his Blunder-axe wildly, Port was telling a story. He shuddered in his seat just thinking about it, Poor Oscar, Oz was probably laughing as well.

And finally on the far right of everything was him and Ruby leaning against a pile of rubble, exhausted from their fights but still managing a face-splitting grin, well, more like he was leaning against the rubble while Ruby was curled up on his lap like an adorable puppy.

All around them were Mistral guard and Atlas military celebrating their victory over _her_. It brought a massive smile to his face," These are my friends from Beacon, the two love birds are what is remaining of my team," He said giving Samuel the picture.

He let out a long whistle,"That's quite the lass you've wrangled there, she's a keeper," He said, eyes scanning the picture. It took a few seconds for Jaune to get what he said.

"Oh! Ruby? Nah, I don't like her that way she's just a friend," He said, slightly flustered.

 _"Mm_ hm," Crocea and Sam said in unison.

"What!?" He said turning even redder.

"Kid, by the look on that lass's face, she's on cloud bloody nine," Sam said with a barely concealed smirk.

One of his eyes turned plasma-blue,"Ooh, you should see what he's thinking right now, naughty boy," Crocea said, turning Jaune redder than Ruby after a particularly brutal teasing attack from Yang.

"Wha-na-de," Words became very hard.

"It's okay I won't tell anyone," Crocea said making a show of reaching for his scroll.

Jaune's head fell into his other hand,"I hate you guys."

"Aww," She gave him a mental pat on the back,"You love me." His eye returned to normal.

"Anyways, That's quite the team there."

"Rubes isn't on my team, she's with the other three girls, team RWBY," He said scratching the back of his neck.

"Tch, tch, even ave' a nickname..." Sam trailed off.

"Kill me."

"Soo, where is the other member of your team?" Sam asked instantly regretting it as Jaune's face fell and smile was mercilessly destroyed.

"Shit...yer' don't ave' to-"

"Beacon," Jaune cut him off surprising even himself," She died in the fall..."

"Sorry lad, my daughter was there. She was an' Upperclassmen, just got back from a mission, she saw first hand what that bitch did to Beacon," He said pouring him self a glass as well.

"Heh...you don't know the half of it. She was in love with me you know, my partner, all of Beacon knew the "Famous Pyrrha Nikos is in love with a dumbass form a backwater settlement!" The stunned look in Samuel's eyes said it all,"I never noticed, I was Oblivious the entire time, she had to kiss me before I considered the idea. It was too late by then though, she put me in a locker and launched me into Vale all the while she was being shot in the heart by an arrow."He finished by downing the entire glass and slamming it down on the table.

"Shit lad..."

"Pathetic right? The worst part was the 'what ifs' I tortured myself with after it happened, the only person that kept me from going insane was Ruby. Me and the remnants of my team followed her to Mistral to 'Save the world' as she put it. Hmph, guess it worked, Watts is serving a life sentence in supermax, Hazel's six feet under and headless courtesy of Mors, Tyrian's rotting in the Vacuan desert, Cinder and Salem are cowering in their castle and a Hunstman army is about to storm the Mistrali Grimmlands to get to her. It's that last part that gets me, the invasion. An army of Huntsmen and an Armada of the like Remnant has never seen vs a Grimm army of unimaginable power and unlimited men," He took a long sip," We don't stand a chance."

After a long pause, Sam dragged the glass away,"Go to yer' team lad. If what yer' sayin' is true don't let yer' last memories of em' be their deaths."

"I can't goddamnit!" He pounded his fist onto the counter," Everytime I do I see her! I see her weak smile and tortured eyes as she pushed me into the locker! I see Weiss' face when she carried Ruby back to the Bullhead! I can't look Ruby in the eyes without feeling like I betrayed her," He slumped back down onto the counter as the tears he was holding back broke free,"I can't lose them like I did her, I can't lose _her_ like I did Pyrrha."

There was a long silence between of them where the only thing that was heard was the quiet sobs of Jaune," Sorry for snapping like that, I thought I was over this bullshit after Heaven. Guess the threat of losing them stirred up some old problems," He said wiping some leftover tears away with his sleeve.

"Yer' only eighteen and ave' experienced nuff' shit to make a grown man ave' a mental breakdown. S' a wonder yer' avent' snapped sooner," He sighed and walked out from around the counter, already having cleaned up their mess during his little breakdown, and put an arm around his shoulder,"Yer' lost someone you loved an' yer' afraid of it happening to the rest of em' but kid," He forced Jaune to look into his eyes,"They survived Beacon, they kicked the Grimm's ass in Heaven, they've got what?" He checked the picture,"Five Huntsmen that would die before anything happened to em'. They're covered but the rest of em' aren't and they can't go into what is likely the toughest battle in the last hundred years with a capn' that's losin' his mind. My daughters gonna be there, think bout' how nervous I am, my little girl, my own flesh an' blood's gonna be on the frontline. But I've gotta trust that she, and the people around' her', are strong enough that I can see my little girl again. An' yer' got to trust that they can handle them they're selves. Yer' trust yer' team, right lad?"

"More than myself," He said with a nod.

"Good, an' for the love a Monty, get a grip and love that lass or I'll smash yer' faces together myself," he said with a chuckle.

He chuckled too albeit small and weak but genuine all the same,"Trust me, I won't make the same mistake twice, my heart won't have it. You're really good at this too, ever think about opening up an 'advice for the mentally screwed' shop?"

"Nah...My ol' heart has had nuff' heartbreak for several lifetimes. Just gotta learn ow' to tape it back up," He said, eyes finding the floor very interesting for awhile,"Anywho!" He snapped out of his trance with a jolt,"How 'bout this ol' Huntsman tell you some tales from his glory days on the way back to base, eh? Just gotta lock er' up first."

A smile slipped onto his face," Sure...I could use a distraction," He said helping with the clean-up efforts.

/-/

 _ **Arisan - Mistral - Beacon Company's Barracks - 0040 - 16:20:43 Until D-Day**_

It was a little past midnight when Jaune finally got back to RWBY, JNR, and CFVY's barracks but instead of going inside he leaned up next to the door and took in the amazing view of the combined fleet of Atlas, Vacuo, Mistral, and Vale or as him and Qrow call it 'The Armada'. Their barracks were on top of a small hill as well, giving him a good shot at the Atlas Flagship 'Resurgence'. He scoffed, too bad it wouldn't make it a mile into the Grimmlands without being torn to shreds by Nevermores and Griffons reducing their air support to a few wings of modified bullheads and three light assault ships.

After a few minutes of staring at The Armada in the moonlight, his mind wandered back to what Samuel said," Crocea?"

 _"What is it?"_ She asked nervously, already knowing what he's going to say.

"Do _you_ trust them?" he asked, looking at his metal clad hand as if it had all the answers.

 _"Yes."_ She said without thinking.

"Do you trust Qrow?"

 _"Yes"_

"Do you trust Ironwood?"

 _"Hell no."_

"Do you trust yourself?"

 _"Yes."_

He let out a long sigh and drew Crocea Mors, stabbing it into the ground in front of him. His eyes roaming the white blade and golden cross-guard,"Do you trust me?"

 _"With my steel and heart,"_ She said taking control and kneeling him down in front of his sword, _" Jaune, Pyrrha wasn't your fault. You-we weren't strong enough for her and would have died if you went up there. Cinder had the Fall Maidens power and killed Ozpin for Oum sake! But you've improved since then. You are strong enough to best Watts and knock him out, to kill Hazel and Tyrian by yourself, you even defended Ruby from enough Grimm to fill the Emerald Forest during Heaven. You stepped up and took charge during Heaven when defeat looked certain and turned it right around. Then there's your big damn heart that can't handle the sight of one of your friends hurt and would do anything to save a random stranger in danger. And perhaps your most formidable achievement, surviving not-so-subtly crushing on Yang Xiao Long's younger sister. What I'm saying is you're more of a Knight than I ever was, you big damn hero, and I can't stand sitting up here and watching you doubt yourself and think you're not good enough when you could take her fortress single handily if you wanted to. As long as they stick with you, they will survive._

There was a long silence as Jaune contemplated what she said, eventually he stood up and sheathed Crocea,"Thanks for that, Monty knows I needed it."

 _"Glad to help, now, get some sleep. We've got a battle plan to explain."_

There was a small creak as Jaune stepped into the barracks, the only source of light was from a small desk to his immediate right with Ruby passed out over Crescent Rose,"Hmph, Dammit Rubes," He whispered, stalking his way over to her.

From the looks of it, she was cleaning Rose's barrel and sharpening the blade, well, she'll need to clean it again considering she drooled all over it. He leaned her back off the table and put one arm under her knees and one under her shoulders and picked her up bridal-style.

About halfway back to her cot she started adorably pawing the air," Mm...cooki...strawbewy...cooki," she mumbled.

 _"How are you resisting this!?"_

"Sheer...Willpower..."He whispered through clenched teeth. She snuggled into his chest,"Which is quickly failing."

 _"An' for the love a Monty, get a grip an' love that lass or I'll smash yer' faces m'self,"_ She imitated.

"What do you want me to do? Sleeping Beauty her!?" He hissed

 _"Ye- She's got the right idea."_

Ruby was now licking and biting his neck while mumbling,"Mm, stwabewy...num."

"Willpower...reserves failing...abort," He laid her down on her bed seconds before disaster struck earning an annoyed groan from Ruby and a sigh of relief from him,"I'm too tired for this," He pulled the covers over Ruby's sleeping form,"Night Rubes," He leaned down and kissed her forehead before heading to his own bed, failing to notice the Lilac eyes watching him from above. But that's not important...

Right?

* * *

 **Hello! I hope you enjoyed this first chapter of what basically was set-up for the chapters down the line. I actually based this entire story off a fight scene I came up with after looking at some Lancaster fan art, I won't tell you it until we're done here though, and formed it into a story. That's really all so, yeah. Review and tell me how I balanced my serious bit and the light-hearted stuff, thanks!**


	2. Coco

_**Chapter II**_

 ** _Salem's Castle - Mistrali Grimmlands - 0700 - 10:00:00 Until D-Day_**

Salem was sat at the once great table in her castle's great hall, the empty seats around her were an infuriating reminder of how far she had fallen. _'I should have killed that damn Arc at Heaven. Now he has cost me my cover. No matter, I came up with a plan for this, let's see who is more important. Mistral? Or me?'_ The doors in front of her swung open revealing the healthy and battle-ready Cinder Fall, her super weapon,"Cinder," She cooed,"Are our forces in Mistral prepared?" She asked, a small smile creeping onto her face.

"Yes my Queen, Taurus is prepared and the Grimm are ready. The city should fall within a few days."

"Excellent, are the Manticores ready?" She asked, her smile growing in size.

"En-route to Arisan now, my Queen. They have been told to specifically target the Arc as you requested," As she said the last sentence there was a sinister spark in her eyes.

"Wonderful, you are dismissed." As the doors closed behind her pawn the Queen let out a sigh and dropped her cold attitude, a brief moment of weakness for the Queen of Grimm. Her crimson eyes drifted out the blood-red stained glass windows and to the horizon where ten thousand Huntsmen would soon be, she had them on the back foot and she knew it, why else would they starve the Kingdoms of Huntsmen in a last-ditch attempt to destroy an almost unstoppable horde of Grimm? But she couldn't shake the feeling in the pit of her stomach that this would be the battle that decided who would rule Remnant.

If she won Remnant's supply of Huntsmen would be destroyed and the Kingdoms left defenseless against her Grimm armies, Remnant would be hers.

If they succeed her and the rest of her inner circle would be executed for treason and terrorism, the Grimm would go back to being mindless packs only drawn to negativity and would be easily pushed back to the Grimmlands, Remnant would hold.

A smile came to her face as the distant screeching of Grimm sounded,"We shall meet, after all, Mr. Arc."

 _/-J-/_

 ** _?_**

 _Whistling wind and rustling trees filled his ears as his eyes fluttered open. He was standing in a clearing at the Emerald Forest, not far from Beacon, directly in front of him in the center of the clearing was an old oak tree. Tied around this oak tree were eight sashes of different colors. one was crimson, one red, one yellow, one green, one pink, one orange, one white, and one black._

 _'Why is this place so familiar?'_

 _There was a small plaque drilled into the base of the tree_

 _ **In memory of teams JNPR and RWBY that gave their lives in the defense of Beacon and the final attack on Salem**_

 _ **'Saviors of Remnant'**_

 _ **Commissioned by Headmaster Pine**_

 _There was something oddly peaceful about staring at your own grave, but also infuriating. He shook his head._

 _'No they won't, can't. Yang still has to become a stand-up comic/Huntress, Weiss has to change the SDC, Blake has to fix the White Fang, Ruby has to change the world and become the best Huntress ever, Nora and Ren have to open the bestest pancake shop in all of Vale, and I have to make sure they get there, whether I end up on that tree or not._

 _The words changed on the plaque_

 ** _Then you better get to work..._**

/-J-/

 _ **Arisan - Mistral - 0630 - 9:47:00 Until D-Day**_

His eyes opened. He was back at Arisan, in his cot. What was that? Was it real? Were they all doomed? No, he wouldn't let that happen but still, what could he do?

 _'Then you better get to work...'_ The words were burned into his memory. Maybe, just maybe, that was real. It was a painfully small chance but after all the bullshit that happens around here, he didn't doubt it.

"GOOOD MOORNIING~" Nora yelled in a sing-song voice followed by the tired groans of everyone else. Jaune could only chuckle. If that dream was all bullshit and not some fairy tale hero talking to him, he would miss Nora's boundless energy and Obliviousness to their tired protests,"COME ON! WE'VE GOTTA GO BREAK SOME LEGS~"

"Nora, it's 6:30. we don't need to be at the hangar unti-" There was a knock on the door that interrupted Ren.

"I'll get it!" Nora hopped off the bed and jogged to the door swinging it open with a grin. There was a man on the other side, he was short, about Nora's height but had massive bulging muscles and a magnificent beard. There was also a massive battleax sheathed on his back,"Hello!" Nora cheered.

The man glared at her,"Commander Arc and 1st Seargent Adel are wanted in the General's office, good day," He turned and stomped off as Jaune and Coco shared a nervous look.

"Coco?" Velvet asked, leaning over the side of her cot to look at her partner.

"Don't know Vel," Coco said, throwing her pajama-clad legs over the side of the cot,"But we shouldn't keep his Highness waiting, I'd like to keep my head on my shoulders," She joked opening her footlocker that was so full of clothes the lid nearly blasted off its hinges. Jaune just hooked Crocea to his belt and chuckled at Coco's annoyed expression.

"Hey Crocea? This armor is _really_ comfortable, you've got to get me the name to your blacksmith," He said with a grin.

"Jaune, he's been dead for two centuries," Crocea stated flatly.

A smirk crossed Coco's face as she strapped on her outfit,"Why do you never let me have my fun?" He grumbled under his breath, making his way to the door as Coco finished getting ready. He leaned up against the wall while having a mental conversation about teasing.

"So Lover Boy," Yang cooed from beside him,"Where'd you get those?" she traced a finger along the bruises on his neck. His hand clamped down on the hilt of Crocea, armor making a bee-line to his neck so fast Yang almost lost her finger.

"Nothing!" His eyes shot to Ruby for a split second but unfortunately, she caught it and her teasing smile grew.

"Ooooh, finally made your move? 'Bout time, so, how was it?" she asked eagerly.

His eyes narrowed and all traces nervousness disappeared,"You're not angry."

"Should I be? I mean, you're not _that_ bad," she said in a playful voice as Jaune's eyes narrowed even more.

"You saw the whole thing."

"I saw the whole thing," She admitted with a nod," But seriously," She clapped a hand on his shoulder and dropped the playful tone," I'd be fine with it even if it was on purpose. You're a good guy Jaune, and you'd kill the unlucky bastard that tries anything on her before me. You're like the most Adorkable couple ever. When you both are together and I can't bring myself to crack your skull open. So you have my consent, Ser Knight," her grip tightened and lilac went blood-red," but if you _ever_ hurt her I'll snap your skull in two." Jaune breathed a sigh of relief, there was the old Yang, but still. Yang Xiao Long, _Yang_ _Xiao-Motherfucking-Long_ , the most overprotective sister on the planet just gave him, a _guy_ , permission to date her little sister.

 _'Did she just say that?'_

 _"Yep."_

A moment later his body was under Crocea's control and making a bee-line towards Ruby, what she was planning to do, he had a pretty good idea and would of went along with it if it weren't for a certain fashionista's arm that caught his collar,"His highness is waiting, Ser Cupid."

 _'How do you commit seppuku in armor?'_

 _/-C-/_

 ** _Arisan - Mistral - 0720 - 9:40:00 Until D-Day_**

Coco wasn't normally someone to get worried.

She never was on even the hardest missions because she knew her team's strengths and weaknesses like downtown Vale, and on the rare occasion she was she would hide it under her sassy and cool attitude. But right now she was terrified, she'd only once been terrified and she hated it.

"Coco? You okay?" Jaune said from next to her.

"Huh? Yeah! Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?" She said, startled out of her trance.

"Oh, just the nervous glances, silent curses, and the overall not you body language," He listed off.

"Checkn' me out?" She said, attempting to lighten the mood.

"Coco," He questioned with an accusatory gaze.

She sighed," I'm scared," She admitted,"I don't know why but," She sighed again," I don't like this mission. Something about it just feels... _wrong_ , like she want's us to do this, like she _planned_ for us to do this," Her mind went to Heaven and the trap Salem had laid, the hundreds of dead Huntsmen in the street and Lionheart's smug smile.

Coco's shoulders slumped as she looked at the ground. She had felt so... _Powerless_ when Lionheart cut through them. Everything she did was returned ten fold upon the unsuspecting students, every bullet she fired was deflected into some kid's head, every hit she attempted was returned with the blood-curdling cry of someone who just had their intestines spill onto the floor. A phantom pain spread across her body where he snapped her bones, the feeling of his sword piercing her gut burning inside,"I never understood you before Heaven. I thought losing someone you loved would hurt _a lot_ but you would get over it after a while, like a bad wound. I didn't understand the looks out into the horizon, the guilt that flared in your eyes everytime you glanced at Ruby, the times you snuck off to go train at night," She closed her eyes and stopped walking, the feeling of blood-drenched cobblestone against her cheek and the familiar burning of tears in her eyes,"You lost more than I did and still made it look easy."

A lone tear traveled down her face as she opened her eyes to the sight of Lionheart digging his sword into Fox's collar bone. The look of pain and shock froze on his face as his body slowly slid off Lionheart's blade. When Fox finally fell he turned his murderous eyes to her short pained gasps of breath. The sharp, unbearable pain that lanced through her when his boot connected with her stomach and rolled her onto her back, the crimson liquid coming out of her wound spilling onto the cobblestone,"A valiant effort child," His smooth voice said,"But mere children cannot defeat me, Salem made sure of it," her eyes trailed across his white face, every drop of blood, every black vein was burned into her memory until her brown orbs landed on his murderous red ones.

A flurry of emotions went through her, pain, sadness, _terror_. She was terrified...she'd never been terrified...

He raised his sword to slash her throat as her pained gasps sped up, she wanted to scream for help, to ball up and cry, close her eyes and hope it was a nightmare, to wake up and hug Fox till' he passed out but none of it would come. The blade of a rapier exploded through his neck with so much force it knocked him into the wall of the house behind her, the spot she was staring at was now occupied by sharp blue eyes and pale skin,"It's...o-okay Coco...I've got...you," Weiss collapsed next to her, exhausted from using so may speed glyphs at once. The last thing she felt before losing consciousness was an unbearable pain in her heart...

Her eyes opened for real this time only to be met by the cloth of a hoodie and a warmth surrounding her. She was about to panic before she heard the sound of Jaunes voice mumbling comforts into her ear. She sighed as leaned more into the hug, ignoring the wetness from her crying. She hadn't let herself relive that memory since it happened and it had been eating away at her, it would have continued to do so until her mental state completely snapped if she hadn't let her emotions flow free," Ho...How did you get over her?"

"He hasn't," She didn't need to see his eyes to know who was speaking,"The guilt and pain still eats at him, though you'll never hear him admit it. I went down the same path as well, seems to be a pattern between us leaders. The sense of loss after you lose someone close to you, the powerless feeling when you watch them die in front of you but are too wounded to do anything. It'll destroy both of you if you continue to blame yourself, Jaune needs to let himself love again or else Ruby will stop waiting and doom him to a life of loneliness and self-destruction, Plenty of Knights have gone down that road and Jaune deserves better than that. You won't let yourself accept weakness, there comes a point in every Knights life where they except they can't save everyone and Heaven showed Jaune that. But that way lie madness if you can't accept it, however, the casualties will pile up and will drive you mad. No-one deserves that fate. That doesn't mean you shouldn't try, however."

Coco took Crocea's words to heart. She was right, Coco couldn't save everyone. The admittance stung a bit but she pushed through. but she would be damned if she didn't try. She closed her eyes again. The image of Fox on Lionheart's blade came back but this time it switched to Vel. After a few seconds, it was Yats, Ruby, Yang, Blake, Weiss, Jaune, Nora, Ren, _her._ But this image it was different, there was a massive smile on her face and life inside her eyes. There was no sword in her collar instead it was caught on a golden minigun...

Who's barrel was under Lionheart's chin...

His head exploded into a shower of gore as the rumbling of her minigun echoed throughout the black expanse,"You okay Coco?" His voice propelled her into reality.

She was still hugging him but now her head was laid on his chest looking up into his sapphire orbs,"Wow, ballsy move there Jaune, any closer I would think you're takin' advantage," She said earning a wide smile in return,"Come on, I really don't like pissed off Ironwood," She pulled away and fiddled with the straps on her arm.

Jaune, still recovering from the sudden take-over from Crocea, started asking a million questions a second to Crocea to which she replied with 'leadership troubles' and 'I dealt with it'. He groaned at her vagueness but let it slide due to time constraints and stormed after Coco.

 _/-J-/_

 ** _Arisan - Mistral - Atlas Flagship 'Resurgence' Deck A - 0725 - 9:35:00 Until D-Day_**

Coco and Jaune jogged down the steel hallway, furiously fiddling with every aspect of their outfit to avoid being torn a new one by Ironwood about how a leader's appearance and presentability is vital, Jaune's mind went back to what happened earlier and how guilty he felt he didn't notice her falling apart. In his defense, she hid it well, probably because of the same bullshit reason he hid it on the path to Mistral with RNJR. Because she had to be 'strong' and 'show no weakness'. He shook his head. He tried bottling it up and convincing himself that, he almost let an Ursa tear his stomach open...if Ruby hadn't saved him.

He shook his head again, now wasn't the time.

He glanced over to Coco who was hastily cleaning her aviators. He could practically see the gears turning in her head. Whatever Crocea said to her about Fox really straightened her out. He won't complain, as long as she's fine he couldn't care less about hat Crocea told her.

They eventually stopped in front of a plain oak door with crystal clean windows flanking it," Ready?" Coco asked not breaking eye contact with the door.

"For what? We didn't do anything wrong?" Jaune said.

Coco grinned sheepishly and rubbed the back of her neck,"I may have turned a toilet into a volcano," She nervously glanced at him, not quite meeting his eyes," while someone was on it."

Jaune face palmed,"Goddamn it Coco..."Jaune mumbled under his breath. The door in front of them swung open swung open revealing ironwood with his pristine military suit, the two Hunters straightening out instantly.

"Ahh, Miss Adel, Commander Arc. Come in," He said, stepping to the side and letting the two teens walk through. His office wasn't really an office per say, it was more of a personal war room with a 3D holo-map of the Grimmlands situated on a table in the middle of the banner-clad room. Ironwood closed the door and motioned them to follow him to the table,"We have a problem," He said once they positioned themselves around the table.

"Really? I thought Mistral being under siege was just another Sunday," Qrow grumbled stepping out of the shadows, taking a swing of his flask," Mornin' kids."

The teens nodded in acknowledgment before Jaune spoke up," I thought Mistral's been under siege since the beginning of the war, how is that news?"

The map in front of them spun to life showing a map of Mistral. Mistral was built as a fortress, way back when, that soon evolved into a mighty city so the defenses were layered if the city were ever to come under attack. And due to Mistral being built on a mountain it was quite easy. The bottom two walls of the map were completely encased in heavy fighting between Mistrali Guard, Atlas Rangers, and White Fang grunts. Outside the walls, about five miles away was an oncoming Goliath hoard that would destroy the outer walls effortlessly without the defenses.

Jaune cursed under his breath at the sight,"How?" Coco spoke up, eye sharp and scanning every inch of the hologram.

"Mutiny,"Ironwood sighed,"3rd, 4th, and 2nd Platoon opened up on the rest of the battalion out of the blue, mix that with the sudden White Fang incursion and a breach in the lower walls," He sighed again,"Mistral's doomed without assistance."

"I fuckin' told you she knew we were coming, Jim,"Qrow planted his hands on the edge of the table,"But nooo 'This is as air tight as it get's' he says 'my own lieutenants and specialists don't even know' have all those years in an Altesisian penthouse made you soft? Or are you just that dumb?" Qrow growled," Now we have to send even more Huntsmen for support! we'd be lucky to have a fucking battalion before we finally move!" Qrow ranted throwing his arms in the air.

"Calm down Qrow, we still have more than enough men to march on her, a petty insurgency won't stop our plans," He sighed for what seemed like the thousandth time,"But we will have to postpone the invasion." He looked over the map with his lip set in a thin line.

after a few minutes of crippling silence and awkward glances Ironwood shot up and turned to the two teens,"Teams RVNN and CRDL From B-Company along with various others shall be sent to Mistral, inform the rest of your company that we lift off at 2400 hours and hit the ground at 0630," They nodded as he turned to Qrow,"I have two more bit of news, Horton got killed while clearing a pile up on the walls, Congratulations Qrow, the 2nd Battalion's yours," He turned back to the other two,"No-one hear's about this, we don't need anymore panic as it is."

They both shuffled under Ironwood's sharp stare,"And the other, sir?"

The door to the office swung open revealing a socially inept read head robot,"Sal-u-tations Jaune Arc!" Penny shouted marching up to the table and standing in between the two shocked teens

"I-I...What the fuck!? I watched you die!?" Coco yelled as the knight was still stunned into silence

"W-Well, Mr. Ironwood saved my body from Amity before it was overrun and brought me back to Atlas where Dr. Polendina put my Aura and memory into another body, though my memories are still a bit fuzzy," Her hand shot out,"Greetings I am Penny Polendina, and you are?"

Coco took the hand slowly," Coco Adel, we didn't know each other that well before you...died?"

"Nice to meet your acquaintance friend Coco!" Penny exclaimed.

Jaune spun on his heels facing Ironwood,"H-How in Oum's name did you do that!?"

"Lot's of lein and late nights, lein and late nights that could have been spent buying troops but I would say having a combat ready robot with a death laser, it was well spent," Qrow said.

"Then why is she here?" The knight asked.

"To restore the P in JNPR Captain Arc," Ironwood said.

Jaune felt like he had been hit by a train,"W-wha?"

"Well since RNJR and JNPR were a force to be reckoned with back in the day, we thought to give that pale bitch a good scare when she saw team JNPR on the horizon," Qrow chuckled,"Ahh, the good ol' days. Where all you had to worry about was a terrorist attack in the heart of Vale, simpler times."

"Now, Penny will be on your team for the remainder of the war and the foreseeable future after, is this okay?" Ironwood said walking over to stand next to Jaune. Jaune nodded frantically.

"The team would love to have Penny back, especially Ruby," Jaune said.

"Ruby!? How is she, did she make it, was she hurt!?" Penny shouted, breaking the conversation with Coco and rattling off questions a mile a minute.

"Yeah, she's fine, she almost saved you Ya know. Mercury stopped her though."

"Enough, chit-chat you're late for the briefing as it is, you'll have plenty of time to catch up on the ship. The briefing has been moved t hangar 4, next to the Extravagant, dismissed." Ironwood interrupted. The two teens...and robot left the room in a hurry.

Ironwood groaned and slumped onto the table,"We're fucked aren't we?" Qrow said, not looking up from the map.

"By Salem herself," Ironwood sighed.

"Well then, gentlemen," The clacking of a cane stopped right next to the table,"We should get started."

Both men looked down at Oscar like he was insane."What? Just practicing my Ozpin." He shrugged

Qrow upturned his flask, only a drop coming out,"Imma need s'more of this."

 _/-R-/_

 ** _Arisan - Mistral - 0800 - 22:30:00 Until D-Day_**

Ruby Rose was practically vibrating in her seat.

This was it, one year since The Fall and the world were on the brink of collapse. She was about to spearhead the charge on the big baddie's castle and save the day, become the hero her mom was. Of course, the red reaper had dropped the rose tinted glasses in Heaven but over Crescent Roses dead body would she ever lose her optimism! Anyway, Ruby glanced around the massive hangar, catching glimpses of a few familiar faces.

Team CRDL sat in the front row of seats chatting away to each other, while CVY sat right next to RWBY and were currently chatting with Blake and Yang. JNR, Being the command squad, stood on the stage at the mouth of the hangar awaiting Jaune to come back. Directly behind them was team FNKI or more accurately team FN, the other two died defending Atlas from a Goliath, which Weiss was talking to.

"Goddamnit Arc, where are you?" Weiss grumbled to her left, finished conversing with Flynt.

"He'll be here soon, I hope," Ruby added under her breath.

Weiss scoffed," He better, briefing should have started five minutes ag-"

"Uh...Hello! I'll just...cut to the...chase," he coughed," Lift off has be-" Jaune cut off

"PENNY!" Ruby screamed, disappearing into a bucket of rose petals and appearing on the stage giving the robot a hug so tight it would have made Nora weez,"I've missed you, how are you here?" She squealed, not loosening her grip in the slightest.

"Ruby!" Penny returned the hug tightly as well," Mr. Ironwood saved me!" Ruby was going to follow up with a question but a cough drew her attention back to the Knight.

"Uh, Rubes...Kinda have a briefing to do," He said with a small smirk.

The Reaper's silver eyes trailed back to rest of the hangar and the two hundred eyes currently staring at her. Her face went as red as her cape as she unlatched from Penny and straightened out,"I-I'll see y-you later," She stuttered nervously, disappearing into rose petals again.

She hit her seat so hard it would have tipped over were it not for Yang's reflexes. She dropped her head into her hands and groaned loudly, how does she always embarrass herself in front of him?

"Aww, It's okay Rubes," Yang ruffled her hair,"Love doesn't judge."

"Where's Cinder when you need her," Ruby grumbled.

Jaune coughed twice catching everybody's attention once again,"As I was saying, lift off has been postponed to midnight and we hit the ridge at 0630 if all goes right, we'll catch her by surprise..." He continued, but the Reaper's hearing drowned out his voice right there. Her eyes trailed up and down the Knight's armor clad body, a sigh of contentment escaped the red-clad girl's lips as she melted into her seat. He carried himself differently than that dorky, awkward, kid that offered her a hand at Beacon, he stood tall and spoke confidently but a small bit of his dorky demeanor that she fell in love with remained.

Her silver orbs traveled up his short, scraggly beard that tickled her cheek whenever she hugged him with enough force to knock him over. She trailed higher to his sapphire orbs, she jumped slightly when she realized they were looking right at her. Ruby's cheeks heated up when a smirk coated his lips, she almost fainted when he winked at her. A dumb giggle escaped her without her realizing," Ruby, could you please stop acting like a love-struck fool and pay attention," Weiss' stern voice attempted to interrupt Ruby's dream world.

"Mm..."

Weiss sighed,"Why do I even try?"

Yang leaned next to Ruby, some shitty pun prepared, but before she could a loud screech erupted through the room, razor sharp feathers peppering the hanger...

And spearing Jaune through the shoulder...

* * *

 ** _That's uh...that's gonna cause some problems down the line. Anyway, heeeyyyyy, s' been a while! Sorry, it took so long, I kinda lost my oomph for this fic halfway through planning it and stalled. Good news though, chapter 3 shouldn't be hard to write, just some combat and Lancaster shit, and 'll be out before October along with a new story that'll last a helluva lot longer than this little side-project and involve OCs, speakeasies, and a metric motherfuckton of music! See ya then. Oh! and please reveiw!_**

 ** _-Cookies_**


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